Tube cutoff and forming machine



Fb. 24, 1970 GIA. YOUNG ETAL 3,496,593 TUBE CUTOFF AND FORMING MACHINE AFiled April 19, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fl 1 I u I W INVENTORS: GEORGE A.YOUNG MICHAEL YUHAS, JR. MATHEW F. PATTON EDWIN J. BURKHART ATT'YS Feb.24, 1970 I AEY N -i' 3,496,598

TUBE-CUTOFF AND FORMING MACHINE Filed April 19, 1 968 2 Sheets-Sheet 2FIG. 2

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ln|m VEJ JJHL INVENTORS'. GEORGE A. YOUNG MICHAEL YUHAS, JR. MATHEW F.PATTON EDWIN J. BURKHART BY: ,Qalfa d gmgi ATT'YS United States Patent3,496,598 TUBE CUTOFF AND FORMING MACHINE George A. Young, Bay Village,Matthew F. Patton, Cleveland, Michael Yuhas, Jr'., Brooklyn, and EdwinJ. Burkhart, North Olmsted, Ohio, assignors to Precision Paper TubeCompany, Wheeling, 11]., a corporation of Illinois Filed Apr. 19, 1968,Ser. No. 722,760

Int. Cl. B26d 3/16 U.S. Cl. 18-5 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Atube cutoff and forming machine for tubes useful as capacitor jackets,having one end constricted generally as seen in U.S. Patent 3,040,385.The machine has on its frame a rotatable wheel having replaceable pegsprojecting radially outward. The tubing is fed onto the pegs,transversely severed to provide a discrete overlap, advanced through aheat tunnel, automatically flattened in the overlapped portion and thenejected to provide a high degree of quality control.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION As mentioned above, capacitor jacekts areprovided with one end constricted. These capacitors are insulated by thejackets (conventionally constructed of Mylar), both thermally andelectrically. The insulation is improved by having the jacket carefullycontrolled as to dimension. Heretofore, this has not been possible withthe precision demanded. In large measure, the shaping of the capacitorjacket has been essentially manual, notwithstanding the fact thatliterally millions of these are employed each year in various electricaland electronic devices.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION The difficulty with quality control has beenovercome through the use of the invention which not only producesjackets of higher quality than those previously available but also ingreater quantity per unit of time. This is achieved through a machinewhich performs a sequence of steps in timed synchronism and in a mannerwherein any deviation from top quality can be immediately discerned.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION The invention is explained in conjunction with anillustrative embodiment in the accompanying drawing, in which FIG. 1 isa perspective view of a machine constructed according to the teachingsof this invention;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the machine of FIG. 1 and FIG. 3 is a sideelevational view of the machine seen in the preceding views.

In the illustration given and with reference to FIGS. 1 and 3, thesymbol T designates generally a tube of considerable length which isemployed to develop the capacitor jacket. Advantageously, this isconstructed of spirally wound ethylene terephthalate (Mylar). Asmentioned hereinabove, the object of the machine operation is to providea constriction at one end of the tube, much as is seen in the co ownedPatent 3,040,385. For this purpose, we provide a frame which, in theillustration given, is a supporting platform generally designatedMounted on the platform 10 is a pedestal 11 which is equipped with aremovable part 12. The part 12 is equipped with an orifice 13 throughwhich the tube T projects and which is sized to closely conform to theouter diameter of the tube T.

Reciprocably mounted on the frame 10 for coaction 3,496,598 PatentedFeb. 24, 1970 tals 15 and 16 which provide a support for a rotatablewheel generally designated 17. The wheel is rotated in stepwise fashionby means of a Geneva drive 18 which derives power from a motor 19.Connecting the motor 19 with the Geneva drive 18 is a belt and pulleydrive 20, a gear-reducer 21 and a chain and sprocket drive 22. Theoutput of the gear-reducer 21 is also delivered to an eccentric 23 whichreciprocates the knife 14.

Mounted in the periphery of the wheel 17 are a plurality of pegs 24which extend radially outward of the wheel 17. The orifice 13 is seen tobe aligned with the horizontal radius of the wheel 17, i.e., in axialalignment with the peg or pegs 24. In the preferred embodiment of theinvention, we provide a pair of pegs at each circumferentially-spacedposition aligned with side-by-side orifices. It will be appreciated thatas the orifice size is changed to accommodate a different tube T, soalso will the pegs 24 and for that purpose the wheel 17 is transverselyapertured and equipped with set screws 25.

In operation, the tube T is advanced so that a portion thereof isensleeved over an aligned peg 24. This occurs during the stoppageportion of the Geneva cycle and during that time the knife 14 isactuated so as to transversely sever the tube, leaving a segmentensleeved on the peg 24 with a discrete portion overlapping the peg 24.Thereafter, the Geneva drive is actuated to advance the ensleeved peg 24through a heat tunnel 26. The tunnel 26 is pivotally mounted on apedestal 27 provided as part of the frame 10 and can be moved to noncovering relation relative to the wheel 17 by pivoting to the dottedline position designated 26' in FIG. 3. It will be noted that the tunneloccupies somewhat less than of are relative to the wheel 17 but this issufficient to soften the end of the tubular segment ensleeved on the peg24. At the end of the tunnel 26, the peg comes into alignment with aplunger-equipped solenoid 28. The solenoid plunger extends intoengagement With the end of the peg, thereby flattening the overlappedportion of the tube. As the tube segment (now flattened at one end)proceeds further in its, arcuate travel on the wheel 17, it comes intoalignment with an air blast emanating from a jet pipe 29 activated by asolenoid air ejector generally designated 30. Alternatively, mechanicalejector means may be employed in certain arrangements to advantage. Theejected workpiece is then conventionally collected in a receptacle (notshown).

Also provided on the frame is a current controller 31 which is operablyassociated with the heat tunnel 26, more particularly, thecurrent-carrying wiring 32 (see FIG. 1). Also provided on the frame 10is a power control box 33 which governs the operation of the variousdrives.

While in the foregoing specification a detailed description of anembodiment of the invention has been set down for the purpose ofillustration, many variations of the details hereingiven may be made bythose skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope ofthe invention.

We claim:

1. A tube cutoff and forming machine comprising a frame, pedestal meansand said frame equipped with orifice means for supporting an elongatedtube, peg equipped means rotatably mounted on said frame forsequentially positioning a peg in axial alignment with said tube andorifice, knife means on said frame for severing said tube to provide asegment thereof ensleeved on said peg with a discrete portionoverlapping the peg end, heat tunnel means and said frame in the path ofpeg movement for softening said tube portion, means operably as- V 3sociated with said tunnel means for flattening said overlapped tubeportion.

2. The machine of claim 1 in which said peg equipped means includes awheel, Geneva drive coupled to said wheel to rotate the same, said knifemeans being operatively coupled to said Geneva drive for severing saidtube between steps of said drive.

3. The-machine of claim 1 in which said orifice means and the pegs ofsaid peg equipped means are each removable to accommodate said machinesto tubes of different size.

4. The machine of claim 1 in which said frame is equipped with segmentejector means positioned in the path of peg movement subsequent to saidflattening means.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Clark. Collins. Gosnell et a1.Hardgrove. Wooley. Sander et a1. Gernandt. Fyfe et 211. Strong.

WILLIAM J. STEPHENSON Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R.

